Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1532882
4 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 2 MARCH 2025 NEWS JAMES DEBONO jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt JAMES DEBONO jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt PA considering UCA extension in Pietà THE Planning Authority (PA) has begun assessing the bound- aries of the Urban Conservation Area (UCA) in Pietà following a request from the Local Council to extend the locality's UCA. This assessment has also been extended to the other localities included in the North Harbour Local Plan, which encompasses the entire urban conurbation between Pietà and St Julian's. Pietà Mayor Stefano Savo ex- plained to MaltaToday that the extension of the UCA in his lo- cality is essential, particularly because significant landmarks, such as the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Fatima, are not cur- rently included within its pres- ent boundaries. The Sanctuary is a focal point of the locality, and Savo stress- es the importance of preserving the surrounding areas, includ- ing the 'town square', com- monly known as 'iz-zuntier', which is central to many local events and plays a pivotal role in the celebration of the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima. Savo ar- gued that these areas should be included in the UCA to ensure their protection. The PA's assessment could lead to a review of the local plan and, potentially, an ex- tension of the historical areas within the UCA. Such a step would be unprecedented, given that UCA boundaries have not changed since 2006. UCAs typically encompass town and village cores where stricter planning regulations are enforced, preventing the demolition of older buildings and safeguarding the streets- cape from incongruent devel- opment. Property owners in these are- as, including first-time buyers, benefit from substantial state incentives. The Labour Party's electoral manifesto commits the govern- ment to "irrevocably define" UCAs, save for extending them with the "inclusion of new are- as" in their boundaries. It also calls for the establishment of a 'buffer zone' around UCAs to protect them from nearby de- velopments. In an interview with Malt- aToday, PA Chief Executive Officer Johann Buttigieg ex- pressed "satisfaction" with the Pietà Local Council's request. He confirmed that the PA's ex- ecutive council had instructed the authority's Planning Di- rectorate to analyse the UCA boundaries across all localities in the North Harbour region. This includes Pietà, Msida, Gżira, Ta' Xbiex, San Ġwann, Sliema, Swieqi, Pembroke, and St Julian's. The goal is to assess whether these boundaries should be re- viewed and possibly extended. Buttigieg acknowledged that while some areas worthy of protection had been left out of the UCA in the present local plans, others had been includ- ed unnecessarily. This assessment is part of a broader effort by the PA to re- fine planning policies through what Johann Buttigieg referred to as "surgical interventions" to be undertaken in the short term before the Authority ap- proves a new Strategic Plan for the Environment and Develop- ment (SPED), which will be fol- lowed by new local plans. Pietà Council's request for an Urban Conservation Area extension has been welcomed by Plan- ning Authority CEO Johann Buttigieg, who has instructed the Planning Directorate to conduct an assessment of UCA boundaries in Pietà and nearby towns included in the North Harbour Local Plan PLANNING Authority CEO Johann Buttigieg has promised to introduce a reform that will pause work on projects appealed by NGOs and other groups for four months. The pause will be in place while the Environment and Planning Review Tribunal (EPRT) makes a decision. If the EPRT's decision is further appealed in the courts, the sus- pension will be extended by an additional three months. Buttigieg made this com- mitment in an exclusive and wide-ranging interview with MaltaToday. He pledged that this reform would be implemented within the next three months and blamed the delay on the need to consult stakeholders. At present, the tribunal can only order the suspension of works in very limited circumstances, such as cases involving potential dam- age to heritage buildings. In most instances, developers are allowed to proceed with works while their permits are still under appeal. This has led to cases such as ODZ swimming pools in Qala and Sannat, where permits were revoked by the courts after con- struction had already been com- pleted, forcing owners to apply for sanctioning. The reform of the appeals sys- tem has been under discussion since May 2023, when the Prime Minister first proposed it in his Workers' Day speech. In Septem- ber 2023, the Cabinet approved a draft reform to the planning appeals process that would halt works until an appeal is exhaust- ed. The following month, the gov- ernment launched a public con- sultation, which ran until Novem- ber. The draft legislation issued in 2023 proposed a three-month suspension of works pending the tribunal's decision. For projects considered of stra- tegic importance by the Minister for Planning, the decision will be made within one month. Cur- rently, appeals are rarely resolved that quickly, with some taking over a year to be decided. At the time, environmental NGOs welcomed the long-await- ed measures but expressed con- cerns about the tight deadlines. They warned that shorter appeal periods could put unnecessary pressure on the tribunal, appel- lants, and witnesses. Meanwhile, the Malta Develop- ers Association (MDA) and Kam- ra tal-Periti (KTP) supported the reform but insisted that it should only be implemented if the time- frames for both tribunal deci- sions and court judgments were also shortened. The KTP also called for a strict three-month time limit for the appeals process at both the tri- bunal and court levels. It has proposed procedural changes to expedite proceedings, including accepting evidence through af- fidavits and depositions rather than requiring in-person testi- mony during tribunal hearings. Furthermore, the MDA has al- so suggested that all testimonies be heard in a single sitting, rather than in multiple hearings, to im- prove efficiency. Work on projects will be paused for four months during pending appeals PA CEO Johann Buttigieg wants the appeals reform to be concluded within three months